One After the Other
by Lucius Walker
Summary: Clone, the ancient automaton made from alchemy, has some thoughts while watching Escha's birth. [Edit: Made some corrections on 7/15/2019]


Colset always had the tradition of celebrating every person's birth. This was because of how small the city was. Almost everyone knew each other, and conflict within each other was scarce. Everyone got along swimmingly, and if you asked any villager or government official there, they would proudly say that they know just about everyone in the village.

However, there was only one person who could truly claim to know everyone that lived there. Her name is Clone, an ancient automaton created from alchemy.

No one truly knows how old she is. Some say that she was old enough to remember when the earth was a lush, green planet. Some say that she was old enough to have met gods and spirits that have long gone extinct, or have otherwise faded away. However old she is, everyone can agree on one thing: She was here long before Colset was founded.

Despite her soft tone, her kind expressions, and her willingness to help the apple farm, not many people talked to her. Perhaps it was because of her inhuman nature, which was constantly reminded by the large wind-up key stuck to the back of her head. Perhaps it was due to how quiet she normally was, not being the type to say much, always staring with solemn silence. Or perhaps it was because despite her dreamy nature, it always grew...uncomfortable to be around her. If you ever spoke long enough with the artificial woman, you would always get a melancholic aura from her, and it would soon grow too painful to be around her.

If you asked her about this though, she would say that she was fine with it, before staring off into the distance.

…

Colset always had the tradition of celebrating every person's birth. Everyone would be in a rush, wondering what gifts they should make or give to the lucky family that would be bringing another citizen to their small city. The lucky mother would be swarmed by people, begging to know the baby's sex, as well as their names. No matter how brash the mother might be, this never failed to leave her speechless with embarrassment, with even the boldest of women not being used to this amount of attention.

Despite this overwhelming behavior, none of them meant any harm, and the mother, who would always look back at that moment with a chuckle, would always invite everyone to see the new baby after he/she was born.

Despite the silent taboo, even Clone was invited. Perhaps it was a way of apologizing for their cold treatment towards her, or perhaps it was more out of professional courtesy, but it would always be awkward whenever the mother would personally invite Clone to the Gathering.

Each time, she would say yes.

…

Colset always had the tradition of celebrating every person's birth.

Over the generations, Clone, the everlasting citizen of the city, would always be invited to witness and flawlessly help with the delivery of the new infant. Over the generations, it grew less and less intimidating to invite the automaton, and it would even become the city tradition to do so. To this date, the green haired automaton has never missed the birth of a child.

Over the generations, everyone's attitude towards her softened, and they began to give her a nod and a wave, followed by a warm smile. Some brave souls were even found talking to her for more than a few minutes.

It wasn't necessarily the fact that they were breaking an unspoken taboo that unsettled those brave souls. It was the fact that they had no idea whether or not she loved or hated the interactions that made it quite unsettling. Deep down, they understood that Clone knew about their feelings towards her. Surprisingly, she seemed to be fine with it.

The one thing that they did know was that with each new person that checked in the city, Clone's face always seemed to light up, always happy and eager to meet a new soul.

…

Colset always had the tradition of celebrating every person's birth...and today was no exception.

Milia Malier, the city's only alchemist, was about to give birth to her daughter. Her family members rushed to help her, bringing buckets and water and towels and everything else that they needed to help guarantee a safe delivery.

Clone stood in the background, having done her part, her face still as stone as Milia's wails of pain echoed through the room. She watched with indifference as Milia's face kept on contorting with pain. Her pain, her suffering, it didn't matter to her. Like the others before her, the pain will pass. Her suffering will come to an end, followed by a bundle of joy alchemized from 9 months of sacrifice and hard work.

Clone felt nothing as Milia tried to deliver her baby for one agonizing hour, her screams never ending.

'_...How long has it been?'_ She wondered to herself, her mind barely registering the commotion in front of her. _'How long has it been since I helped deliver the first infant?'_

She gazed at Milia's entrance, and saw the head of the baby coming out.

_'How many times have I witnessed this?'_ She pondered to herself. _'How many times have I held their newborn child in my hands, welcoming them to this barren world?'_

She closed her eyes, deep in her thoughts. Her key began to rotate, the gears in her head clicking and clunking in motion, the mechanical sound drowned out by the sounds of labor.

_'How many times…'_ She smiled sadly. _'Will I have to watch them die, one after the other?'_

If Clone could shed tears, she would've done so at the moment.

_'One after the other, a new soul is born.'_ Her head bowed with resignation. _'One after the other, they will all grow up. One after the other, the small saplings will one day grow into a fine tree. They will find their place in this world, they will meet someone for themselves, and they will one day make children of their own. And I will always be there to help them deliver their children.'_

She opened her eyes, and saw that the new girl was about to be fully born. At this, she began to walk towards the bed.

_'One after the other...those parents will die. One after the other, I will be forced to help bury the people I know and loved. They will grow old, and they will die, their final purpose will be to help feed the dying ground. One day, their children will meet the same fate. Their bodies will grow old, their gears will stop turning, and their spark will fade from this world. And yet, here I'll stay, unable to join them. Unwilling to join them.'_

Sometimes she wondered if that last statement was true.

Her thoughts were interrupted as the infant began to cry, the small, weak creature forced out of the world it knew and lived in, forced into the infinite, barren unknown.

"Shh, shh." Milia whispered lovingly, holding her newborn daughter in her arms. "It's okay, mommy's here." Milia hummed at her newborn daughter, tears of joy sprouting from her eyes. Clone just watched, her lips curling into a small, sad smile.

_'And yet...I can't stop myself from loving each and every one of them, one after the other.'_ She murmured to herself. _'One after the other, I hold them with my hands, gently and lovingly, as if they were my own. Despite knowing how their journey ends, it still brings me joy to see new life sprouting from this barren land.'_

"Here, would you like to hold her?" Milia asked, breaking Clone's train of thought. "Her name is Escha. We agreed on that name if she turned out to be a girl."

Clone smiled warmly at this, before picking up the baby. The infant had calmed down significantly, and was now babbling, her small, green, shining eyes gazed at her own with wonder and delight. Escha, the future alchemist of Colset, gave her a small, cheerful laugh, and Clone smiled at her.

"Hello...Escha." She greeted the new life in her arms with a smile, promising the newborn that the world was safe. "Welcome to Colset."

…

Colset always had the tradition of celebrating every person's birth. But perhaps it was truly Clone who always kept the tradition going. And she would continue to do so, one after the other, until it was her time to go.

But for now, here she will stay. Here, she would unknowingly one day raise Escha in place of Milia, who would later die an untimely death from an epidemic. Here, she would raise Escha to be the wonderful person she was meant to be. Here she will stay, continuing to be there for her new daughter, until it was her time to die.

And all she can do move on...one after the other. In this painful, yet beautiful cycle of life and death and love and birth.


End file.
